Whole Wheat Powdered Sugar Donuts (Baked not Fried)

Whole Wheat Powdered Sugar Donuts

I used to buy them out of a vending machine–packages of 6 mini powdered sugar donuts with so much sweet powder they could induce a coughing attack just by biting into them. Like sucking a sugar cloud into your lungs.

I decided to recreate those favorite donuts of my youth with a healthier profile. I’ve done it before i.e. these Homemade Brown Sugar-Cinnamon Oatmeal Pop-tarts. What would happen if I baked the donuts instead of frying, substituted white whole wheat flour for all-purpose white flour and added some yogurt for extra protein?

After a few false starts, I found powdered sugar heaven for around 100 calories a donut. I’m not claiming you can’t tell the difference from their fattier relatives but they more than satisfy my cravings. Mix them up easy as muffins and bake in less than 10 minutes with no greasy mess or odor in your house.

Thanks to Lara Ferroni who got me started down the baked donut path with her Baked Chocolate Doughnuts. She also taught me about the importance of nutmeg to get the characteristic flavor of a donut. I didn’t know and likely would have left it out since it’s not my favorite spice. The idea of using a zippered plastic bag (she used a decorator bag) with a hole to fill the pans also came from her. Absolutely inspired!

Don’t have a doughnut pan? Make donut “holes” with a mini muffin pan. I bought my doughnut pan at World Market but they are available at most kitchen stores and online in the 9-15$ range.

Powdered Sugar Doughnut Hole made in mini-muffin pan

Paula’s Pointers

White whole wheat has all the nutritional value of regular whole wheat without the characteristic bitter flavor. I have not tried regular whole wheat in this recipe.

Pecans pack a lot of flavor in these little gems. Chop finely and the kids won’t notice or leave them out if you wish.

Regular yogurt can be substituted for Greek yogurt. Reduce the milk to 1/4 cup.

Use a zippered plastic bag with the corner snipped off to pipe dough into donut pan.

Whisk yogurt, milk, egg, oil and flavorings together in a separate small bowl. Combine all at once with dry ingredients and stir only until everything is moistened.

Spoon batter into pastry bag or quart-size zippered plastic bag. Seal. Snip small corner of plastic bag and force dough out of hole in a fat rope that encircles each doughnut cup. Fill only ½ to ¾ full or you will lose the hole in the middle of your doughnut. Makes 12 donuts and possibly 3-4 "donut holes" in a mini cupcake pan. Bake for 9-10 minutes.

These donuts are lite and fluffy, not too sweet, just right and so easy to make. I used bread flour, sour cream instead of yogurt and added 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon. If you are using a regular size donut pan it makes 8 donuts. This morning my husband ate 3 before they were cool so I can’t make them very often.
Thanks for this recipe!

I just stumbled onto your blog, and it was love at first “site”! I just bought a Bella doughnut whole baker for $8.49…. just wondering if you think this recipe would rise enough to fill in the “hole”. Still not sure what “salad in a jar” is, but I can’t wait to find out. Thank you!!

hi! might be a silly question but how do you get the powdered sugar to stick? and is there anything added to the coating other than the powdered sugar? i dont think i saw any instructions on that part? Thanks!

Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I made these this morning, without pecans, it was doughnut heaven! In addition to being much healthier than doughnuts from the store, they were also better tasting, and far more affordable 🙂
Oldest boy has requested that I make the next batch in muffin cups, so I can fill them (I’ll use pudding), and he can have a better version of an eclair!

My daughter devoured the donuts,yay ! I made a new batch of them tonight ,along with with the poptarts ( not completed just the dough in the freezer for now ) another dish.

Last night I made the broccoli,rice and cheese casserole, which is just delicious ! My little one doesn’t like melted cheese, but her Mom sure does 🙂 I’m thrilled that I’m not being bombarded by the extra sodium you find in the canned soups too.

I might have failed on the lettuce greens. What’s worse is that I had actually read about your salad green expeiriment but I just wasn’t thinking when I was assembling it all lol

Thank you so very much for putting all of your hard work and ingenuity up here. I really appreciate all of it 🙂 Im such a beginner too, especially with baking, that all of your hints and notes you include are incredibly helpful !

I am now the proud owner of two donut pans soley because of this recipe! I dont even really care for donuts myself but my daughter is addicted. Her diet is terrible and she is very picky, so this is my best effort to give her something she likes but a healthier version of it 🙂 I havn`t baked more than sugar cookies and the rare cake l,but Im goimg for this and the homemade poptarts as well. in addiion I made up 5 salad in a jars (which i added artesian lettuce which i hope holds up) too! Thank you for all these tips tricks and recipes (and lovely photos), we`ll see how well I put them to use 🙂

Rach,
I can imagine how much your daughter loves these donuts. They can be hard to resist. She will love the pop tarts too, although they are quite a bit more trouble but a great project to make with your kids.

Hope you enjoy your salad in a jar. I did not have good luck with adding salad greens to my romaine but maybe yours will be better. They just didn’t last nearly as long. I wrote about it here. Have a great day!

I love snooping through your recipe archives!
I made these yesterday because my parents were visiting me for a cup of tea and we loved them – the pinch of nutmeg is wonderful.
I made doughnut holes because I don’t have a doughnut pan and the good thing with those is that it feels like you can have more 🙂

Sarah,
Buttermilk would be a good substitute or sour milk (1 cup of milk with 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice added to it), but use a little less because Greek yogurt is quite a bit thicker. You may have to experiment a bit.

Spelt has gluten in it, so they wouldn’t be Gluten-free. They would be wheat free. 🙂 I’m wheat intolerant but okay with gluten, so I use spelt flour a lot and came to your blog after a google search for donut recipes with spelt.
I copied and pasted an explanation about the differences below:

“If products are ‘gluten free’ they are also ‘wheat free,’ but products that are wheat free are not necessarily gluten free. Gluten is found in many grains, such as wheat, barley, rye, bulgar; and kamut, spelt, and oats to a lesser extent. People can be allergic to wheat and/or have a gluten intolerance, but they do not necessarily have to have both. The latest statistics say that 1 in 133 people are gluten intolerant (also referred to as celiac), and 1 in 5 people would feel better if they cut out wheat.”

Paula
First so sorry about your dad – second I have a question and don’t know where to ask it. I found a recipe for spiced maple banana muffins on tasty kitchen. Can you sub whole wheat flour for the regular flour? If so one to one? I’m not a baker and don’t know the science behind all purpose and ww – so I thought I would ask the scientist!!

Rebecca, that make take a bit of experimentation. If you are using regular whole wheat flour, I would try half whole wheat and 1/2 regular to begin with. Play with it from there. If your are using WHITE whole wheat, you could possibly get away with more whole wheat than white but can’t predict result for sure. Whole wheat flour will definitely change the texture. I’m not really the authority on whole wheat but some of my readers are. Can anybody help?

That is one good lookin’ baked donut! I’ve been looking around for a recipe for them for a while, too! This is perfect, and your photography is so beautiful. Looking forward to exploring your recipes and seeing what’s next! – Georgia

I remember my dad making donuts years ago in an electric donut maker (like a waffle maker but for donuts) and we loved them as kids–they were a Saturday morning treat! I got a donut pan several years ago and even though it was supposed to come with recipes it didn’t. It has been sitting in the cupboard ever since with the hope that some day I can use it and make the donuts like my dad did.

I am SO glad to have found this recipe and know you liked it. My kids BEG me for donuts all the time (but I rarely concede) so I am totally going to be trying these out soon. Thanks!

As a little girl I lived for these and Fig Newtons. Who would’ve thought I’d grow up to be a dietitian?! Ha. I still do enjoy my treats, and these would bring back some many memories. I entered your contest, but I wonder if I could make these free-form. Do you think the shape would hold if I simply piped the ring on a baking sheet? I wonder.

Heather, that is a BRILLIANT idea. I suspect it might work although they might not be real pretty. Certainly worth a try. I used to love Fig Newtons too but it has been a long time since I had one of those.